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Unlike the United States with its generalissimo politicians [#permalink]
01 Feb 2011, 06:37

Unlike the United States with its generalissimo politicians - Washington, Jackson, Grant, and Eisenhower- the ‘martial arts’ have been conspicuously absent from Canadian politics. The exception to the rule is former Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, who became the first Canadian leader to bring a gunslinger ethos to Canadian politics. Trudeau introduced Canada to the refined art of single combat; it was the politics of “doing it my way”. Single-combat confrontation implied much more than the renegade in power did, and far less than the tricks of William Lyon Mackenzie King, prime minister intermittently between 1921 and 1948.

Trudeau’s unique background prepared him for the role of authoritarian leader he would assume later in life. Born on October 18, 1919, Trudeau lived in French-speaking Montreal, but heard English at home from his mother, making it easy for the young politician to appeal to all sectors of Canada, a bilingual country. As a young man, he walked and cycled through Europe, finding himself on occasion on the wrong side of the bars in foreign jails. By 1940, Trudeau entered the law faculty at the University of Montreal. As a student he enlisted in the Canadian Officers Training Corps, where he was given a commission as a lieutenant, a rank he held until his retirement in 1947. Trudeau, a renowned sportsman, held a brown belt in karate, knew how to skin dive and could descend 150 feet off a cliff with ease. He continued performing flamboyant physical feats even in later life as Canada’s fifteenth prime minister, astounding Canadians with his prowess. The public’s adoration made it possible for him to practice his personal brand of ‘do it my way’ politics, initiating profound and long-lasting changes to his country.

Other leaders would never have undertaken to deal with such taboo issues as divorce, abortion and homosexuality– matters likely to infuriate conservative Canada from coast to coast. Even the powerful Mackenzie King dared not touch any of the three, though Trudeau tackled them together in an omnibus bill as Minister of Justice under Lester B. Pearson. His reason for loosening legislation on these issues was, as he put poetically put it, "The state has no business in the bedrooms of the nation." The myths-makers have it that this was Trudeau's first deliberate ‘gun slinging’ move, performed with the ultimate goal of attaining national leadership. Contrary to popular belief, Trudeau had no leadership aspirations at the time; all he had was a passion for combat that eclipsed other religious considerations. Trudeau instigated far-reaching changes in legislation governing divorce, abortion and homosexuality that have had a major impact on Canada, shaping the country into what it is today.

13. The primary focus of the passage is on which of the following?A. Comparing two Canadian prime ministers and contrasting their personal style of leadershipB. Describing the leadership style of one of Canada’s prime ministersC. Evaluating the success of the leadership style of one of Canada’s prime ministersD. Summarizing the contribution of one of Canada’s prime ministersE. Tracing the long-term impact of legislation put forward by one of Canada’s prime ministers

14. It can be inferred from the passage that former Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie KingA. Was opposed to abortion and put forward legislation making it illegalB. Was opposed to abortion but did not put forward legislation making it illegalC. Was in favor of abortion and put forward legislation making it legalD. Was in favor of abortion but did not put forward legislation making it legalE. Did not put forward legislation making abortion legal

15. The author of the passage mentions Trudeau’s accomplishments in sports primarily in order toA. Explain the source of Trudeau’s physical staminaB. Illustrate that he had earned the adoration of the Canadian publicC. Contrast it to his personal brand of ‘do it my way’ politicsD. Provide one reason why he was able to single-handedly push through legislation that should normally have shocked conservative CanadaE. Provide one reason why he was able to single-handedly thwart legislation that should normally have shocked conservative Canada

16. The quotation "The state has no business in the bedrooms of the nation," is most probably used toA. Present the opinion that the state should have less of a say in issues that are essentially not public mattersB. Present the opinion that the state should have less of a say in issues that are essentially public mattersC. Present the opinion that the state should have more of a say in issues that are essentially not personal mattersD. Provide an example of Pierre Elliot Trudeau’s flamboyant style that he used to captivate the Canadian publicE. Contrast Pierre Elliot Trudeau’s flamboyant style with that of Lester B. Pearson

I'd say the passage difficulty is in low 600s: there are no difficult choices to be made between the answers, all of them are rather clear except 15D/15E could, in which you need to know what 'thwart' means:)

Re: Unlike the United States with its generalissimo politicians [#permalink]
17 Nov 2011, 19:01

chipi113 wrote:

Why Q15 is D if in the second paragraph is not mentioned at all legislation?

I got D, after that I chose again E. The misunderstand the word 'thwart' make me wrong. I can understand that the accomplishment in sport will express his bold to face with taboo issues mentioned in third paragraph.

Re: Unlike the United States with its generalissimo politicians [#permalink]
19 Nov 2011, 03:31

I got three right out of four.

I have a doubt on Q -15. According to the passage,Trudeau’s accomplishments in sports => Adoration of Canadian Public => made it possible for him to practice his personal brand of ‘do it my way’ politics.

So shouldn't the answer be B as it was the direct implication of his accomplishments, rather than D?